The Dust After the Fall
by Avalon and Shayden
Summary: This is an Undertale AU crossover between Dusttale and Aftertale. All credit for characters and stories goes to Toby Fox (Undertale), Loverofpiggies (Aftertale), and Jesuka (Dusttale).
1. Chapter 1

The Dust After The Fall

"get dunked on, kid." The smoldering barstool crumbled into a pile of ashes, still burning from the blast of a powerful energy beam. Two floating dragon skulls, responsible for the destruction, quickly disappeared from sight, their master's will been completed. But despite having the appalling deed be done, the one responsible looked none the happier, and neither did the humanoid flame monster of a bar owner.

"sorry about the damage, grillbs, but thanks for clearing out the place before things got ugly," said Sans, a short, but big boned, skeleton wearing a blue jacket, a white shirt, and some black shorts. The bar owner, Grillby, didn't speak with any understandable language but gave a flurry of angry hand motions that didn't need much explanation.

"just put it on my tab, grillbs. although...tiba honest...it won't matter soon anyway." Grillby gave a sympathetic but confused look.

"just promise me one thing. after everything resets, please watch out for my brother, will you?" Grillby nodded slowly, not noticing that the room was beginning to shift and change. Sans let out a long sigh as the room disappeared into a black nothingness.

Sans stood waiting, briefly alone inside a black void, until a near perfect doppelganger of himself appeared slowly from the black. This new figure was also a skeleton, like Sans, but this one was wearing a red scarf and a white jacket with a bleeding red slash across it. The doppelganger also had an unusual white mass hovering over one of his eyes, preventing it from being seen from the curious onlooker.

"so here we are again, geno. got any more bright ideas in that skull of yours?" asked Sans.

"you mean besides the one i've tried giving you? i've already told you, sans, countless times already, it's literally hopeless," said Geno.

"so...that would be a no then? i don't mean to be working you 'down to the bone', but i honestly don't know how much more of this i can take. i just don't want to see papyrus get dusted again."

"i know, but the only way to stop that brat from committing genocide again is by erasing the timeline so they can't reset anymore."

"but that would still erase papyrus too, so no deal."

Geno looked irritated at Sans' stubbornness but soon decided it wasn't worth pushing the topic anymore, "suit yourself then, just...at least consider it, sans."

"ok," said Sans tiredly "hey, can i, uh, talk to the kid again? i want to see if they have any ideas." Geno grunted and pointed to where a small child was playing with two more floating dragon skulls.

"thanks", said Sans. As he approached, he mused at how the three were playing like gentle dogs without a care in the world. Guess sometimes ignorance is bliss, even when times are as tough as these.

"ok you two, break it up, need to talk to the kid again," he said to the two skulls. They glanced sadly at Sans and quietly whimpered as they sluggishly floated back off to Geno, wanting to play some more with him instead, but having no luck in the end.

"hey, kiddo, how's it going?" asked Sans.

'It's fine' said the child. 'And for the last time please just call me Frisk'.

"i see you were playing with the gaster blasters again. is geno still fine with it?"

'Yeah, he hasn't complained as much about it like he used to,' said Frisk. Their face then darkened, 'You want a new idea on how to beat Chara, don't you?' Sans nodded as his face darkened too. They both knew that there was nothing really new to be said about it. It was the only real reason he would be here anyway.

'I'm sorry, Sans' started Frisk, 'but I've already told you everything I know. I don't know what else will work to get them to stop resetting with my body.'

"don't be, kiddo, you've done the best with what you could," said Sans. Frisk could only smile at the comforting gesture.

"welp, if that's all, i guess it's time for me to head back then. mustn't keep them waiting too long, else they might get 'chilled to the bone'," said Sans. Frisk smiled and let out a small giggle as he went over to Geno. "so, are you ready for another round?"

"i don't have much of a choice, do i?" Geno sighed. "...fine, just don't say i didn't warn you earlier," he snapped his fingers and Sans teleported into a messy room. Sans didn't have to look around to see who's it was. He knew it was his own, but he also knew this was just another recreated version of it. Caused by the reset when the 'brat' died by his hands last time.

In the cluttered emptiness, Sans could only feel a familiar cold numbness deep within his bones. He wished, oh he wished so badly, that this wasn't true, but, despite everything, Geno's idea may be their best, and only, solution they have against this unending nightmare. As long as that brat could reset, they were all but playthings to be done away with at their mercy. Toys in the hand of a self proclaimed god, really. Sans wondered if there was anything feasible, or reasonable, he could do against them; but nothing new came to mind that wasn't done already. Heh, guess he'll just have to try again, and again, and again, see if anything new can be done this time. Heh, he mused, wishful thinking at best. All that 'kid' wants to do is just kill everyone, no matter how many times they've already done it before. Sans let out a long sigh. All of this thinking is just making him more tired than he already is. Maybe he just needs another trip to Grillby's again to cheer him up today, so long as 'they' don't show up there again.

Without spending any more time on this subject, Sans crawled into his bed and curled up into a ball looking depressed, hopeless, knowing, and dreading, that there is almost nothing he can do to save his brother Papyrus.

He didn't get much of a chance to enjoy the quiet when, moments later, Sans heard a knock on the door voice called out from outside, "BROTHER, ARE YOU UP? WE NEED TO PREPARE TO CAPTURE THE HUMAN TODAY!"

Heh, speak of the devil, I guess. "yeah, i'm up bro. just give me a few minutes to get changed, okay?"

"ALRIGHT, JUST HURRY UP SOON, OTHERWISE BREAKFAST WILL GET COLD!" said Papyrus as he could be heard walking downstairs.

"heh, yeah. as if that's the only thing i'm worried about, papyrus." Sans quietly mumbled as he got changed into a less dirty, somewhat presentable, outfit that was laying about on the floor.

Sans casually stepped out of his room and saw that waiting downstairs was a tall, thin, skeleton wearing a white, handmade outfit and a red scarf. "THER E YOU ARE, BROTHER! I WAS JUST ABOUT TO COME GET YOU!"

"heh. welp, i'm here," said Sans without actually walking downstairs.

Papyrus paused a for a bit before realizing that Sans was being too lazy to even walk down the stairs, "COME ON, YOU LAZYBONES, WE'RE LATE AND YOU HAVEN'T EVEN EATEN BREAKFAST YET! BUT FEAR NOT FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE ALREADY PLANNED FOR THIS AND MADE YOUR BREAKFAST READY TO GO, JUST HOW YOU LIKE IT!"

"heh, thanks again bro," said Sans. "hey, paps? would it be alright if i go on ahead to my station, just for today?"

"AND AVOID RECALIBRATING YOUR PUZZLES? ABSOLUTELY NOT! YOU HAVEN'T DONE YOUR JOB IN OVER EIGHT DAYS NOW!"

"but bro, i did a ton of work yesterday. a 'skele-ton' of it!"

"SANS! ENOUGH WITH THE PUNS! IT'S STILL TOO EARLY!" shouted Papyrus.

"but paps, i got a dozen of them. i'm sure they're 'egg-celent'!"

Papyrus groaned in disgust and then sighed in defeat, "ALRIGHT FINE, JUST PROMISE ME YOU'LL DO YOUR WORK LATER TODAY, OKAY?"

"ok. i promise."

"I CAN JUST FEEL IT, SANS! TODAY IS THE DAY THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL FINALLY CAPTURE A HUMAN AND BE LET INTO THE ROYAL GUARD! I JUST KNOW IT!" Papyrus posed as he gave his dramatic speech.

Sans' expression slightly darkened briefly, "heh, sure thing bro. welp, i'm off to my post. see ya paps."

"GOODBYE, BROTHER. AND DON'T LET ME CATCH YOU AT GRILLBY'S AGAIN WHILE YOU'RE ON DUTY!" but before Papyrus could get a response, Sans was already gone.

Somewhere along an empty path in a snowy pine forest, Sans materialized from thin air and let out a long breath of relief. He didn't want to leave Papyrus so quickly like that, but he wanted to have a moment to himself before his own day began with the kid. No better way to do that than by getting there first, before someone like Paps ran into them later, Sans mused as he started walking.

Sans did meet a few other fellow monsters along his walk. Most said their hellos and asked the usual questions like 'How are you doing?' or 'Are you going by Grillby's sometime?' and his responses were the same scripted, rehearsed, lines he said to them a dozen times before in a dozen different timelines. A harsh reminder of the same, insane, loop of time he's been stuck in for Asgore knows how long. He could try telling them about it, but it really wouldn't do them any good. They'll just be reset and everything will be back to square one, without anyone having any memory of what happened. It just makes him feel sick watching it over and over, but it's best, for now, to just keep up his permanent grin and bear it in silence. Like he always does. No need to waste any effort trying to save everyone from something they can't fight against.

After a while longer on the path, Sans finally reached his destination. Just beyond a vacant sentry post that had no name to whom it belongs to (aside from a few belongings of relish, ketchup, and mustard) was a large door carved into the stone wall that loomed silently with the quiet of the forest. Sans sat down and rested his skull on it's cool surface, settling in for the wait.

"knock, knock?", said Sans. He waited for a reply, but, after a few minutes of waiting, he was only greeted by silence. "heh. welp, looks i'll have to keep myself busy then," He said as he slowly closed his eyes for a bit and continued on with his knock-knock joke. "who's there? juno. juno who?"

"Juno anything other than bad jokes, Sans? Hehehehe." said a new voice. Sans' eye sockets shot wide open in surprise as they zeroed in on a talking yellow flower popping out of the ground a few feet in front of him.

"Howdy, Smiley Trashbag! Long time no see! How has your brother been doing? Hehehehe."

"he's doing just fine, weed," Sans replied with bitter animosity "what do you want, flowey?"

"Oh, nothing." Flowey said with a sly grin "I just wanted to see how your latest plan is going and well...I think you already know the rest."

"so you can blab to the brat? not a chance."

"Oh, come now, we both know that you're running out of options."

"why are you even here?"

"To give you a possible solution, one that you didn't even think of."

"just get to the point."

"Okay", said Flowey as his face shifted to a much more sinister look "But you're not going to like it!" The silence held between them like a lead weight. Neither side wanted to back down but neither one wanted to make the first move. Flowey, however, was the first to speak, "Hmph, well you're no fun. Well here's the plan. If Chara keeps resetting and killing everyone in each timeline, then what would happen if, oh, I don't know...", Flowey gave Sans a sinister smile "...everyone was already gone?"

The expressionless silence hung between them as the details of the plan started to sink in until Sans finally realized what Flowey was implying. "YOU WANT ME TO KILL EVERYONE!?", shouted Sans as his eye socket blazed blue and two Gaster Blasters appeared around Flowey.

Flowey's started to panic, "Look, Smiley Trashbag, I know that by now, you're running out of options. This seemed to be your best, if not, only shot at getting a chance to beat them. So, call off your toys, unless you want your brother to get it." Flowey said coldly.

"how dare you bring paps into this!", the Gaster Blasters began to charge up an energy blast. Flowey flinched and braced for an incoming attack, but then, slowly, the Blasters started to power down and vanished as fast as they came. Sans took a tired breath, Flowey may not be a saint, but he had to know why he was helping him in the first place, "couldn't you do it yourself? it's not like you haven't done it before".

"Tsk, you'd stop me before I even get the chance to try. As for the why...well I'm sure you can figure that one out on your own, Trashbag. Teehee!", Flowey chuckled as he gave Sans a smile and a wink. Before Sans could ask again, the world started to shift and change once again. "Oh! Looks like they're resetting early. That should give you enough time to think about it, Sans. See you later, comedian..." As Flowey finished his farewell, him and the surrounding world tuned into a black void once again.

Sans didn't have to wait long before Geno and Frisk appeared. Before he could even say anything, Geno just got straight to the point, "i've already heard everything, and i say absolutely not! killing is not an option we can entertain, even in our situation". As much as Sans wanted to agree with Geno, he could only remain silent, his smiling expression holding a look of utter defeat. "wait, you aren't seriously considering flowey's plan?!"

"what other choice do we really have? do we have to wait till the brat gets bored of us and decides just to leave us dead?"

"you'd be killing your friends! everyone you know will dead by YOUR hand!"

"at least they won't be killed in vain. think about it geno, if i get enough lv, then there's a far less chance of them winning and a far better chance for us to convince them to undo everything."

"what are you getting at?" questioned Geno.

"every time they die, everything is reset. and, with every reset, everything goes back to the way it was like nothing even happened. they'll keep doing this so long as they can keep killing everyone and keep getting more power. so what would happen if someone ELSE took away that opportunity and forced them to reset as many times as they wished?"

Geno paused a bit to understand what Sans was trying to say before responding with utter shock, "you mean to take advantage of the reset...you mean to use their own power against them..."

"exactly, geno. it doesn't matter how many die, everything will just go back to the way it was before the deed was even done. i don't like this any more than you do; hell, i probably will hate it more than you do since i'll be the one dusting everything...everyone. but it's still worth a shot, dontcha think?"

Geno paused to mull it over and, after a short bit, spoke his verdict meticulously and carefully to Sans, "i'm still against it, but let's let the kid speak their mind first before we decide". Both skeletons turned to Frisk, expecting the jury to sentence them to either damnation or retribution.

Frisk took a moment to think, then they said, 'In theory, it should work. Chara will still have the usual advantage of being able to predict your attacks with each reset, but with a lot less room for error as your damage output will grow as your lv rises. I cannot speak for your defense but the best case scenario is that it will take more than one hit to kill you, worst case being that you still go down in one hit. Ultimately, the chances of them still winning after you get more exp Sans are incredibly small. Your chances of survival are better too. Much better than your usual encounters with them in the Judgment Hall. I say it could be worth the shot, but...'

"but what, frisk...?" asked Sans.

'Even if they eventually give up, will you be fine after everything is said and done?' said Frisk. 'Your memories will still carry over with each reset, and I'm just not sure you will still be you after you cross that line and start killing other monsters instead of Chara.'

Sans face darkened as he spoke with venom. "heh. that's precious...coming from the one who started this whole mess to begin with."

Frisk flinched in fear before quietly responding, 'Just be careful Sans...don't make the same mistakes I did with Chara...or with my own twisted sense of curiosity,' with that said, Frisk retreated further back into the void and sat down quietly with their back to them.

A moment later, Geno broke the silence, "sans, before we go forward with this crazy plan, i got something to say just in case things get bad."

Sans looked curiously at Geno, "yeah, what is it?"

"whatever you do...DO NOT hurt papyrus under any circumstance. if you do...you'll be the one that will be having the 'bad time'." said Geno as his face darkened with malice.

"geez, geno. of course i won't harm papyrus, i care about him as much as you do."

"you promise, sans?"

"you know how i hate making promises, but, i guess i'll make an exception in this case."

"good. please don't screw this up, sans," Geno snapped his fingers and Sans once again found himself in his room once again.

Sans did his usual act like before with Papyrus. Saying a few puns to have his way and taking his breakfast to go as he left in the direction of his station, saying hi to the usual monsters and giving out his usual jokes along the way, as he traveled through the forest. But instead of going to his sentry post like he promised he would to Papyrus he decided to take a different route along the way. This route was frequented by only a few monsters, making it easy to avoid witnesses for what he was about to do. What he must do.

It didn't take long before Sans encountered a fellow monster, a teenaged male snowdrake that was pacing around looking rather glum. He didn't notice Sans approaching until he said hello. "Oh, hi Sans. Can you help me out? I'm trying to come up with some good puns to try out in my next show."

"oh sure. i'm all ears; if i had ears that is."

"Great! Can you start me off with a topic about snow?"

"uh, sure. it sure is icy today, isn't it?"

"No kidding, but it's still 'ice' to see you Sans!" Sans let out a weak chuckle that died out with the current conversation as his expression darkened and became more sullen. "Hey is something wrong, Sans? I can try some better ones if that'll cheer you up?" asked Snowdrake.

"i'm...sorry...", Sans started to tremble slightly.

"Huh? What do you have to be sorry for? It wasn't a good pun anyway."

"for...this," the area darkened and a white square appeared around the two.

"A fight?! Sans, this isn't very funny if you're playing a prank on me! I'll call for help if you-", the snowdrake's words we're cut short as a bone erupted from the ground and impaled through its body. Its body spasmed uncontrollably from the pain until it suddenly went limp and turned into a pile of dust. As this occurred, a white upside-down heart floated in midair only for a split-second before it shattered and disappeared. * **Your LV increased!** * appeared briefly in a floating text box in front of Sans as the area returned back to normal with only a pile of dust sitting where the snowdrake was only a moment before.

He couldn't believe it. He actually did it. He...he...Sans could feel some part of him start to snap inside as the weight of what he did started to sink in. He vomited up his breakfast over his hands as he sank to his knees and stared at some of the dust that blew onto his slimy hands from the nearby breeze.

"heh. that was...so easy.", mused Sans. He let out a shaky series of chuckles. He actually did it. He actually...murdered someone, not just some killer human but a harmless passerby. Someone he knew.

"it felt really...good too, " But for some reason, he didn't feel horrible inside. No, he felt...stronger. He felt something growing within. A new, intoxicating power was seeping into his bones.

It gnawed at him. Pulled at him. Urged him to...to go find..."i want, no...i need...more," but that wasn't what really bothered him. No, it was the fact that he actually...liked it. It was almost like all of his woes could go away with just a wave of his hand. No feeling could ever describe how it felt, how it was so addictive. He shakily got back onto his feet, feeling more powerful than ever. "heh. i get it now...why they love it so much...why they need it so badly...this...power...they won't stand a chance if i get it first. they won't have this...freedom...anymore".

"Hey what's going on over there?! I heard some shouting!", shouted a monster approaching in the distance.

"welp, it shouldn't be too hard to 'dust' the rest of the underground if it feels this great!" cackled Sans as his eye socket began to burn blue once again with a new tinge of red seeping in on the outside of it as he raced off to towards his next victim.

Sans went on to kill one monster after the next. Enjoying it more and more with each lv he gained. Each and every increase to his damage, exhilarating. Every increase to his defense and hp, refreshing. Every scrap of exp he came across, a treat for his growing desires. Eventually, he even went on to kill some of the most powerful monsters in the Underground like the stoic and proud Undyne who was killed after a hard fought battle after trying to protect a monster child from the wrath of Sans. The glamorous and popular Mettaton, killed on his live T.V. show without hesitation and without mercy. The mighty king Asgore, ruler of the Underground and the most powerful monster of all, beaten before he was even given a chance to defend himself. One by one, each monster fell to Sans' destructive power. Bit by bit, Sans lost a little more of his mind with each dying friend that fell, until there was nothing but an insatiable lust for power.

However, only one monster was seemingly unaware and unaffected from this genocide. Papyrus was too busy recalibrating his puzzles in the isolated areas of Snowdin to even notice what was going on with the rest of the kingdom. He only went looking for Sans after he finished his own duties to check if his brother was also done recalibrating his own puzzles or was just sleeping at his sentry post again.

He ran into Sans sitting outside the stone door just by his post, staring at it. "BROTHER WHAT ARE YOU DOING? YOU STILL HAVEN'T RECALIBRATED YOUR PUZZLES YET!"

Sans was startled by the new voice behind him, but he didn't turn to face him, "oh, sorry bro i was...busy."

"WITH WHAT?! YOU HAVEN'T DONE A LICK OF WORK YET AND MOST OF THE DAY HAS ALREADY PASSED!"

"but i did a lot of work today. a skele-'ton' of it! hehehehe...", Sans voice trailed off in a eerie chuckle that seemed to chill the cold air even more and echo across the icy woods.

"ARE YOU ALRIGHT BROTHER? YOU SOUND A BIT OFF."

"sure bro, i'm just 'bone' tired. heh." said Sans as he turned around to face papyrus with a crazed grin and strange, almost discolored eye sockets.

"BROTHER, WHY ARE ALL OF YOUR CLOTHES SO DUSTY? YOU LOOK VERY ILL TOO. ARE YOU SURE THERE'S NOTHING WRONG?"

Sans, ignoring Papyrus' question, started up a new topic, "heh. uh bro, can i ask a question?"

"SURE BROTHER, WHAT IS IT?"

"if i needed something, would you help me? no matter how strange it may seem?"

"OF COURSE BROTHER! THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE FOR EACH OTHER ISN'T IT?" Said Papyrus with a sincere grin.

"heh. uh, thanks bro. it really takes a load off my chest...", with no warning, a bone attack erupted from the ground and stabbed through his brother's handmade armor. Papyrus yelled in pain and fell onto the ground, wounded, but still alive. Barely.

"BROTHER...WHY?!" pleaded papyrus.

"shh, it'll be all over soon, bro. besides...it would be better to be killed by me than them, right?"

"I-IF IT'S ABOUT THE HUMAN, W-WE CAN WORK TOGETHER, RIGHT?! WE CAN TRY TO CAPTURE THEM!"

"you don't get it papyrus! they'll kill EVERYONE! you...me...EVERYONE! i...", Sans stopped himself for a moment to regain his cool before continuing on, "...i only want what's best for everyone. now please...don't struggle. it will only make it worse."

"BUT...," Papyrus started.

"shh, hehehehe...," chuckled Sans. He raised his arm to signal the final blow. Papyrus could only watch in terror at his executioner, his own brother, was about to kill him. Papyrus begged, pleaded, quietly for mercy, but Sans was no longer listening.

"goodbye, papyrus...," Papyrus could only close his eye sockets and wait for the final blow, but when he braced for it, it never came. When Papyrus opened his sockets, his brother was nowhere to be seen.

"BROTHER...WHERE DID YOU GO? BROTHER?", called out Papyrus. He tried to get up but nearly fell back down again and let out a whimpered cry as the bone still stuck in him hit the tree he was using to stand up.

As he was stumbling away, trying to get to safety , the stone door opened with a loud creak. Papyrus turned to look at a lone young child with red eyes and was wearing a blue and purple striped shirt. The child looked at Papyrus and smiled a cruel grin as they pulled out a knife.

"Oh look, free exp," said Chara.

"SANS...PLEASE...HELP ME...", cried Papyrus.

Sans was standing inside the void again, with a look of surprise and pure fury. He wasn't expecting Geno to have the ability to intervene right when it was about to get fun. But, before Sans could process or react, a white square formed around Sans and Geno appeared just opposite of Sans.

"what. have. you. done!?", demanded Geno. "i was stupid enough to let you try that insane plan to begin with, and now it looks like i was stupid enough to trust you."

"what have i done?" said Sans coldly "i was trying to save papyrus from the brat! and now you left them at their mercy!"

"not like he would have fared any differently considering what you were planning to do. you broke your promise, and now you'll pay the price, you dirty brother killer...", Geno's eye socket glowed a fierce blue as he waved his arm and three Gaster Blasters appeared at the ready, all aimed at Sans.

"oh, is that how you want to play it then? in that case, do you want to have a 'mad' time?!", Sans' own eye socket blazed with a red and blue glow as he smiled a devilish grin and summoned his Blasters in turn. With his insane laughter filling the void, Sans pointed his hand at Geno and fired his Blasters.

Only one child would witness the outcome of this duel. But they did not end the fight, they did not join a side. They could only sit and cry, saying it was all their fault...


	2. Chapter 2

The Dust after the Fall 2

"I told you that you can't beat me here, Sans. Just give up." said a short skeleton in a white jacket stood who stood over another defeated skeleton who wore a similar blue jacket. The black and empty area around them was littered with the bones of their previous fight. "You've both lost and broken yet another promise and if you keep trying, you'll never be able to leave this place ever again."

"Heh. Then why don't you just kill me, Geno? Isn't that all you're good for trapped in this void?" said Sans. With his Hp almost gone, another hit from any attack would kill him once he returned to reality.

Geno's red scarf hung limply over the red streak on his chest that perpetually bled a red residue. Without hesitating, he raised his hand and snapped his fingers causing several blue bones to stab through Sans. Not killing him but ensuring that he won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Sans struggled to free himself regardless, but to no avail.

"Blue means stop, remember?" said Geno, "I couldn't kill you here even if I tried but I don't want you causing any more trouble. Especially since you won't be leaving here. Ever."

Sans paused. He began to process what Geno was implying, and his heart sank. "No. No, you can't! I need to kill that brat!"

"And what about Papyrus? Isn't he the one you promised not to harm?"

"What are you talking about? He's right there, with us." Geno looked at the spot where Sans turned his head to, but there wasn't anything there. Nothing but the black emptiness of the void.

"You've lost your mind, Sans. Papyrus was wounded because of you and Chara finished him off just moments ago. He's gone. Now stay put until this is over, okay?" Geno turned to the screen floating in the air, showing what was going on in the Underground. So far, Chara had just arrived to a vacant Snowdin Town with a rightfully confused expression growing on their face.

Sans turned his head to face the only other inhabitant in the void, Frisk. "Kid, you gotta help me get out of here. Please..."

Frisk turned away from Sans to watch their past mistake run freely on the screen above with old tears still drying on their small face.

"Where is that skeleton? Better yet, where is everyone? Is this a prank?" said Chara as they walked through a ghost town that was once called Snowdin They were checking under every nook and cranny to find even the slightest hint that someone was still around, but sadly only finding themselves coming up empty handed. "This isn't funny anymore. Anyone?"

Chara continued through the Underground, hoping to find any trace of monsters still around. Waterfall had only silence. Hotland held no luck either. Not even the Castle had anything to offer. It was like someone before them had gotten to everyone before they themselves could. Chara even strode through what was supposed to be the most densely populated area in this whole place, but there was still nobody to be seen.

Chara was growing more frustrated as they walked through the most memorable place of their journey, The Judgment Hall, unimpeded. "Arrgh! What the Hell!? What happened to all my LV!? Where is Sans?! He better just be having tea with Asgore or else I'll just have to Reset everything and see how he likes that!"

But unsurprisingly, the throne room of King Asgore himself was also empty. With literally nothing else to do, and with no motivation left, Chara sat down on the throne uncontested. A brooding scowl almost marring their face.

"Where is everyone? Did someone already kill everyone before I got here or did I forget to do something?" But nobody answered except for the chirps of birds and the silence of flowers growing.

Chara let out a sigh of defeat. Waving their hand, a bright orange button was summoned in front of them with the word 'Reset' on it. "Welp, guess there's only one thing left for me to do then. I'll find you comedian, no matter what it takes."

"My...child..." With her dying breath, Toriel, the caretaker of the ruins, fell apart into a pile of dust. Her soul, floating where she once stood, soon shattered and disappeared shortly after.

"Finally! Now that's over with, I'll get that comedian and make him pay." Chara cleaned off their dusty knife and tucked it up their sleeve to prevent suspicion. The only thing left now were the purple doors of the Ruins that lead to the rest of the Underground. It was all that was left in keeping in the red-eyed child from continuing their rampage on the monsters. Sadly, with a little force, they too gave way.

Chara walked the same familiar path they traveled on hundreds of times before. And like every time before, they sought after what was the same and what was different in this timeline. However, this time they were determined to find answers to what happened previously and if that took a few monster lives to get, then all the more worth it.

Up ahead was the familiar sight of the wooden bridge surrounded by useless wooden pillars. A good place to start as any. The place where Sans would always first introduce himself for the comedian he is. Chara stopped and waited at the foot of it in tense excitement. Hoping for that familiar voice to come from behind to greet them with its bone-chilling tone, so they waited. And waited. And waited.

 **But nobody came.**

"Where is that lazy skeleton? Ten minutes and still a no show? That's unlike him to be late for this meeting." They looked down the path and tried to see if his brother, Papyrus, was coming to go check up on him. But there was nobody there either.

"That's it. If he won't come to me, I'll go to him." They passed the bridge and went to Sans' sentry station, taking a look to see if he was hiding there. All his usual condiments were there, but they were all frozen solid and dusty as if they weren't even touched in a long while. Their curiosity was interrupted when a voice boomed from behind them making them jump.

"OH MY GOD, ARE YOU A HUMAN!" Chara whipped around to see it was just Papyrus, a tall skeleton wearing a red scarf and battle armor, "AH-HEM! HUMAN! TIS' IS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS! FUTURE ROYAL GUARDSMAN AND THE GREATEST SPAGETTITOR TO EVER GRACE THE UNDERGROUND! NYEH HEH HEH! IT IS MY DUTY TO HUNT AND CAPTURE ANY HUMAN I FIND WITH MY INGENIOUS PUZZLES TO SHOW THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM TRUELY THE BEST! NYEH HEH!"

"Ok...", Chara responded grumpily. "Hey, can I ask a question before we do your puzzles?"

"OF COURSE, HUMAN! ASK ANY QUESTION AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL ANSWER!"

"Where's Sans? Isn't he supposed to be at his post today?"

"UH...I'M SORRY HUMAN BUT I DO NOT KNOW OF ANY MONSTER THAT GOES BY THE NAME OF 'SANS'. BUT FEAR NOT HUMAN! FOR I WILL NOT REST UNTIL WE HAVE FOUND YOUR MONSTER IN QUESTION!"

"You're joking right? He's a short, lazy skeleton who cracks puns and never does any work regardless of what you say to him. You two LIVE together in Snowdin."

"I'M SORRY HUMAN, BUT I LIVE IN WATERFALL NEXT TO UNDYNE'S HOUSE. I DO NOT KNOW OF ANY OTHER SKELETON OTHER THAN MYSELF THAT LIVES IN THE UNDERGROUND. YOUR QUESTIONS ARE...VERY CONFUSING TO ME, HUMAN. BUT FEAR NOT! A PLATEFULL OF MY WORLD FAMOUS SPAGETTI WILL CHEER YOU UP! I SHOULD HAVE SOME..." but Chara didn't hear those last few words. They were shocked at the sudden realization of what just happened.

"Sans...isn't in this timeline anymore."

"So that's what you were trying to do, Geno? Take me out of the picture and leave them to their mercy like you've done so many times before?" Sans was still pinned to the ground, the blue bones piercing him are preventing him from even doing a shortcut to escape.

"No, not quite, Sans. I only want to see where this will go and see what I can salvage out of it. You just hang tight and enjoy the show and maybe try catching a few Z's? You look bone-tired from our fight." said Geno as he turned back to the screen. Right now, Chara just killed Papyrus from behind and is resuming their usual murder spree on everyone else, only more frantically in hopes of trying to draw out Sans.

Sans could only watch with a voice screaming in the back of his mind. Telling him to get out. To get to them and get the LV before they do. To make them suffer a thousand deaths, over and over and over and over...until...until...

Sans stopped. _This...this wasn't right...Why was he so vested in getting LV? Why? Why? Why was he...no, who was he before all this? None of this...makes sense anymore._ He looked to the side where he could vaguely see a disembodied head of Papyrus, whispering something intelligible.

"None of this...makes...", his eye sockets were getting heavy. _Maybe a nap isn't such a bad_...Zzz.

"Sans. Wake up." a small voice whispered.

"Huh? Wha-?"

Frisk was kneeling next to him, eyes still puffy from earlier, but their expression was clearly one of worry. "Sans. You need to get out of here."

"Heh. Sorry kiddo, but no can do. Hands are tied as you can see."

"Sans, this isn't the time for puns. If we don't get you out of here soon Papyrus will be erased."

"What do you mean, Frisk? He's right..." He pointed to where the disembodied head was but now nothing was there. Why did he think Papyrus was there? Why did he... Never mind. "Sorry, I spaced out for a bit there. You were saying?"

Frisk expression grew even more worried. "If we don't hurry, it'll be too late. Here, take..."

"And what do you think you're doing, Frisk?" In a split second, Frisk's soul turned blue and they were sent rocketing away from Sans. "I will not have this happen again, Frisk. For once, let Papyrus get the peace he deserves and end this cycle of torment."

"By having this world be erased! No, there must be another way!" shouted Frisk as they were trying to hold their ground against the magic, but failing quickly. "Sans! Help me!"

 _Kill them...Take their Lv...Become strong..._ The disembodied head of Papyrus reappeared behind Frisk. It's words now clearer than ever. Yes, he must get Lv...He must become stronger...He...No...He must save Frisk and get out of here! Sans snapped his fingers and used his blue magic to pull Frisk back towards him with all the determination he could muster. Frisk was now stuck in a tug of war between two powerful entities with neither showing any sign of giving up.

"Geno! Let go...of...the kid!" Sans could feel his strength fading. If he moves any more than he already is, he might not ever be able to get out of this place.

"You...first!"

"If...you say...so!" Sans snapped his other hand and turned the fragment of Geno's soul blue as well. Geno only had a split second to register what was going on before being thrown skyward at record speeds, breaking his concentration over Frisk.

Frisk was sent tumbling back at Sans. Only stopping when they nearly ran into him face first onto the ground, dazed from the force. Sans noticed that there was something in Frisk's outstretched hand, a piece of monster candy. That was what he needed to get out of here, a little more Hp to last against the blue bones pinning him down so he can teleport out of here.

He started to reach for the item. Fingers almost grazing the prize. "Almost...got it...just a...little bit more..."

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" Geno teleported back onto the ground and fired several dozen bones at Frisk and Sans causing a huge explosion of dust. Geno was unsure if he stopped them or not, but if anything, Sans Hp should be at zero now which will prevent him from leaving this place as doing so will kill him. Just in case however, Geno summoned a few more bones, ready to strike if anything was still moving.

"It's a beautiful day outside." A voice began to echo through the cloud, "Birds are singing. Flowers are blooming. On days like these, guys like you...well, I think you know the rest already, pal." Geno turned to where it was coming from. Standing just under the screen, Sans stood boldly, free from the bones, holding Frisk under his arm after using a shortcut to get them to safety.

"You still can't win, Sans. Only I can bring you out of this place. Give up before I remind you who's in charge here."

"Heh. Well buddy, that's where you're wrong.", said Sans as he put Frisk down. "Getting in is the hard part. Nobody knows where this place is. But getting out? That's as easy as-." With a snap of his boney fingers, Sans disappeared out of the void.

"Man, this sucks. Without Sans, killing all the monsters doesn't have the same appeal anymore." Chara was walking down the familiar stretch of the Judgment Hall, but with no skeleton to meet them like before. "Nothing gives me any challenge anymore, except that fish lady but who cares really? Maybe it's high time for me to permanently erase this world and just leave at that?"

Chara continued walking into Asgore's throne room and as expected, the big Fluffybuns was still here watering the flowers. Asgore offered them some tea and wanted to know what kind of monster they were but Chara didn't care to tell or listen. They just wanted get through this boring skit as quickly as possible. With the death of Asgore there was nobody left to oppose Chara. Nothing to really do anymore, but to sit on another empty throne.

"Guess this is it then. Time to say goodbye." They summoned the reset button in the air in front of them. It hovered nonchalantly in a brilliant orange hue until it rapidly glitched into a new word.

 **ERASE**

Chara started reaching for the new command but stopped as a series of footsteps started to approach from the Hall. Chara was about to call out until, unexpectedly, the footsteps stopped just outside the door, right around the corner. Two sharp knocks sounded just after that.

"W-who's there?" asked Chara hesitantly.

"You know." said a familiar voice.

"You know who?"

"Exactly, you little brat." Sans rounded the corner, drinking a ketchup bottle. "Heya. I see you've been busy while I was away."

"So it would seem. Where were you and why didn't anyone know you anymore?"

"Oh, please. Let's not question the how's or why's, you hardly have the patience for that kind of thing anyhow." Sans' eyes started to drift towards something in the air, then his perpetual smile grew more crooked. Demented even. "Oh, hey Papyrus. Yeah, you're definitely right, bro, they did take something that belongs to us. All that Lv..."

"You're...insane, Sans. If you want my Lv, you know exactly how hard it's going to be just to get it, Comedian." said Chara as they dispelled floating button in front of them and pulled out their dusty knife.

"Heh. Well in that case...DO YOU WANNA HAVE A MAD TIME!?"

"Frisk, why? Why did you go against my wishes and help Sans again? I was so close to having this world erased." Geno turned to face the small child after witnessing once again Sans dying at the end of Chara's blade.

"Because there was still another way Geno. We can still try again and get that happy ending that we both deserve."

"Deserve? Why do you think you still deserve a happy ending? If I recall correctly, you were the one who started this. You were the one who's curiosity caused an entire underground to go empty and forced me to watch my brother die by your hand." the white bar that constantly hovered over Geno's eye started to fizzle out before reconstituting itself, briefly showing the disturbing sight that was hidden behind it.

Frisk was quiet for a few minutes, just watching the screen displaying Chara changing the ERASE on their button back to RESET before pressing it with an excited smile of murderous glee. "Are you going to have Sans keep his memories of this timeline?"

Geno expression grew more tired, "No. Best we start from scratch again. Let's just agree to never do this idea again, Ok?"

Frisk turned to Geno and gave him a weak smile, "Ok..."

"Hey Sans..." A small human and Sans were seated at some barstools in a place called Grillby's. The bar was pretty packed and everyone seemed like their usual happy, cheerful selves. It seemed like nothing bad as happened in awhile for these folk.

"Yeah...kid?" the bartender, Grillby, taking note of the tension forming between the two customers at the counter, started to usher out the crowd as quickly as possible. Within minutes of the eviction, the air began to get cold and heavy with dark dread.

Chara turned to Sans with a horrible smile. "Do you remember when YOU killed everyone?!"

Sans' eye burned blazing blue as he summoned two floating skulls behind him, "Yeah? As if I would be crazy enough to do that." Without waiting for a retort, the skulls fired energy blasts at the demon child.

"Get dunked on, kid." The now empty barstool crumbled into a pile of ashes, still smoldering from the blasts of the powerful energy beams.


End file.
